Champions League - Discuss!

[thecraw]

Why do Arsenal go straight into it coming 4th in the league yet Celtic as champions need to play two qualifying rounds?

Now I may be old fashioned but Celtic are champions. That means they won the league, Arsenal didn't! Just can't understand why UEFA want to make the rich teams stronger and richer and discriminate against the smaller teams! Champions of a country are champions irrespective of whether they are from Finland or Italy and they deserve to at least have the chance to play Manchester United or get that big draw and German TV money.

The days of teams like Aberdeen, Dundee United, and Rosenburg having European runs are finished for good as UEFA have created a closed shop.

Its pathetic.

 

[Imurg]

Don't Arsenal have to qualify too...?
ManU, City and Chelski go straight through
4th place plays the qualifiers....

 

[FairwayDodger]

Man city and Chelsea didn't win their league and failed to get out if their CL groups yet go straight back in this year. Celtic win the league and got to CL last sixteen but face THREE rounds of qualifying. Pure nonsense.

It's all about money, champions league in name only.

 

[Imurg]

It's all about how well the respective Leagues have fared over the last X number of years.
English teams regularly make semi-finals or finals so get allocated more places than Scottish teams that hardly ever get out of the groups....Spain will get 4, Germany 3 or 4, Italy the same, France probably 3, Turkey 2, Portugal 2 etc etc etc

Not necessarily fair but that's UEFA for Ya!

 

[tyke]

Arsenal do have to play in a qualifying round, but have to agree with the OP if you are champions of your country you should surely qualify automatically.

 

[thecraw]

Don't Arsenal have to qualify too...?
ManU, City and Chelski go straight through
4th place plays the qualifiers....

Ok, wasn't aware of that but the point remains the same. As champions you deserve to get straight in not have to play qualifying rounds. Celtic have more right than Chelsea or Manchester City to do so in my opinion. Really sad how its carved up.

 

[FairwayDodger]

It's all about how well the respective Leagues have fared over the last X number of years.
English teams regularly make semi-finals or finals so get allocated more places than Scottish teams that hardly ever get out of the groups....Spain will get 4, Germany 3 or 4, Italy the same, France probably 3, Turkey 2, Portugal 2 etc etc etc

Not necessarily fair but that's UEFA for Ya!

Nope, it's actually about the number of tv viewers in each country.

 

[Imurg]

Arsenal do have to play in a qualifying round, but have to agree with the OP if you are champions of your country you should surely qualify automatically.

But then we'd get CS Fola Esch - Champions of Luxembourg going straight through............

If Celtic have another good season and, say, make the Semi's then they might get an automatic spot the following year.
If they don't make it through qualifying or can't get out of the groups then they'll have to do it all over again...

 

[MetalMickie]

Remember the real decision makers are not UEFA but the G20 (or whatever it is called) group of "leading" clubs.

Personally I have never understood how it can be called the Champions' League when the vast majority of clubs competing are anything but.

 

[thecraw]

But then we'd get CS Fola Esch - Champions of Luxembourg going straight through............

If Celtic have another good season and, say, make the Semi's then they might get an automatic spot the following year.
If they don't make it through qualifying or can't get out of the groups then they'll have to do it all over again...

Sadly they won't though as Celtic can't go and splash 12 million on a player due to the carve up of money. Its an uneven playing field. What's wrong with the champions of Luxembourg going into the CL if they get a pay day against Munich, Man U and Celtic it'll swell their finances and allow them to continue to invest and improve. Knocking them out before the competition even starts just keeps them as poor man's whipping boys!

 

[Imurg]

That's the way it used to be Crawford - Champions of all the European Leagues in a hat. Knockout Cup.
European Cup it wwas - those teams tha won their Country's Cup comp went in to the Cup Winners Cup and those that finished 2nd, 3rd and sometimes 4th got in to UEFA Cup.......

Seemed to work back then.......

It's the way it should be now in my opinion.

 

[thecraw]

Totally agree it should still be that way.

UEFA have carved this up to keep "big" teams happy.

 

[tyke]

That's the way it used to be Crawford - Champions of all the European Leagues in a hat. Knockout Cup.
European Cup it wwas - those teams tha won their Country's Cup comp went in to the Cup Winners Cup and those that finished 2nd, 3rd and sometimes 4th got in to UEFA Cup.......

Seemed to work back then.......

It's the way it should be now in my opinion.

Couldn't agree more.
As an aside what are the play-offs all about, you can finish in 3rd place 20 points ahead of 6th place and still not get promoted, totally wrong.

 

[Liverbirdie]

Each country has a co-efficient, which is based on that countries success over the previous 5 years. So points will be awarded each time that countries teams win it, get the final, semi finals, through the group stages etc. It is also used for the allocation of the number of places a country gets.

I'm not saying it's right, but that is how it is done.

Italy are in danger, or it may have already happened, so that they will only get 3 spaces in the CL. They used to get 4, but as their clubs have performed poorly in recent years, they can lose a place. Possibly Germany may have gained it.

Where Scotland suffers, is they only get one space, and sometimes they don't get through from the qualifiers. I think the same is done in the UEFA and possibly all points from both comps go into the co-efficient. There may also be a "dragging down" process whereby the other Scottish teams dont perform well, so don't back up the old firm. (Tin hat on - keep it civil).

 

[Liverbirdie]

Couldn't agree more.
As an aside what are the play-offs all about, you can finish in 3rd place 20 points ahead of 6th place and still not get promoted, totally wrong.

And you get a trophy also, which second don't get - go figure.

 

[Dodger]

It is the way it is I am afraid.Not saying it's right (I think it isn't and would prefer it to be for Champions only) but its tough poo.

And Scotland's co efficient will never be good while we only have one team that is capable of sometimes earning decent points while the rest never ever come close to making the 1st round proper and I am afraid it is going to be that way for a few years now.

 

[thecraw]

It is the way it is I am afraid.Not saying it's right (I think it isn't and would prefer it to be for Champions only) but its tough poo.

And Scotland's co efficient will never be good while we only have one team that is capable of sometimes earning decent points while the rest never ever come close to making the 1st round proper and I am afraid it is going to be that way for a few years now.

Closed shop. Pathetic and co-efficient means feck all as far as I'm concerned. Champions are champions.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

It is based on how the teams for each nation fare and points awarded. In thoery if Man U, Chelsea, Arsenal and City all went out in the first group, and this continued for a couple of seasons England would eventually lose the points to get the 4th club in

 

[Val]

With the setup the CL have just now, European success for Celtic is getting to the group stage IMO given they have two qualifiers against teams who will be no mugs.

 

[Liverbirdie]

It is a closed shop, and all based on money.

That is football all over now.